Before the kids head back to school, Damon Evans is sorting through and ironing out all the transportation issues. As the new Director of Transportation for the Lafayette Parish School System, he says right now, bus driver staffing is the biggest problem.

“We usually have enough (full-time) drivers to get on every single route that we need,” said Evans. “But the problem is the sub-driver pool. We're actually working on building that pool, so we don't run into the problems of the past.”

Last school year, a bus driver shortage was an issue around Lafayette Parish. There were also several school bus accidents, so in the coming weeks, they're ramping up safety training.

“Our job is to make sure every single child gets picked up in the morning, gets dropped off at school, gets picked up at school, and is dropped off at home safely,” said Evans.

There is bound to be changes to certain bus routes this year. But a very simple online tool helps figure out things like bus routes, pick-up times, and even bus driver information.

22,000 phone calls came through last year to the LPSS call center with bus route questions. This year, Evans is hoping people will utilize their online website instead.

“You will have an exact list of when your child is supposed to be picked up, an exact address, how far away it is from your front door, the bus number, and the drivers name and phone number,” said Evans.